A Killer Family
by In Darkness Is Light
Summary: Sarada overhears her uncles talking about her parents and realizes how little she knows about their love story. What are her parents hiding and why won't they ever talk about their love? She's determined to find out but the story may not be as pretty as she thinks. SasuSakuSara family oneshot.


_**IDIL's Note: **__This started out as a quick idea based off the last two lines of the story. I've basically just started writing on any prompt that comes into my head haha. As always, looking forward to your constructive criticism, please take the time to review whether you loved or hated it! _

_**Disclaimer:**_ I do not own Naruto, Boruto, or any other anime.

Her curiosity had started on a Saturday. Her Papa was back in the village and they'd gone out for a family outing to a festival along with Naruto and Hinata and Sai and Ino's families.

The former Rokudaime had also tagged along, saying he couldn't miss such an opportunity to connect with his many nephews and nieces.

"He's not your actual uncle," her father had retorted. "Don't confuse the children Kakashi. You're just a creepy old Sensei."

Kakashi had waved him off good naturedly, with a mutter of "Yeah yeah, don't be jealous because they like me better than you"

She'd stopped at a stall when she noticed that she had been left behind. In front of her she could see her Mama and Papa who were undergoing a rare moment of normalcy, as Sakura led her husband by the hand to the stall selling tomatoes. After purchasing the fruit, she had tried to feed some to her husband but had been turned down and now was pouting like a child. "It's just a tomato," Sarada could see her lips mouth, "I'm not trying to poison you!"

Sai and Naruto had been behind her, seemingly eyeing the same scene, when she heard a voice comment "It's still so weird to see him and Ugly like that. From trying to kill each other to playing house. Traitor-kun sure has changed."

Sarada's eyes widened at the comment. Her parents kill each other? What the heck were they talking about? Although the comment had been light hearted, she could tell that it wasn't a joke. She spun around to face them. "What are you talking about?!" She yelled.

They looked down at her surprised, as if only just realizing that she was there. "Now look what you've done Sai!" Naruto cried, before kneeling down to face Sarada, placing a hand on her shoulder. "Don't worry about what he said, he's just being stupid."

Not wanting to be rude, she simply nodded but in her mind, she had made a decision. She'd been wondering about her parents' past, particularly her father's ever since she had tried to pull information on him and had been unsuccessful. _Who exactly was he? What had happened between him and Mama? _She needed to find out.

That night, as Sakura was engrossed in cooking dinner for the family, she decided she would bring it up casually. "Mama," she cautiously started, "you and Papa knew each other for a long time, right? When did you fall in love?"

Sakura froze as she heard the question. She'd given Sarada bits and pieces of their relationship here and there, but had never told her the full story, as it would mean divulging part of Sasuke's past that they had decided she was better off not knowing.

"Well," Sakura paused, "it happened when we were 19. We went traveling together and it kind of just...happened. Why do you ask?"

Sarada furrowed her brows, this wasn't the answer she had wanted. It didn't leave her any more knowledgeable about their relationship than before. She debated whether to share what she had heard as a way to force her mother's hand. It seemed she would have to. "Uncle Sai said something weird the other day...he said you and Papa had tried to kill each other?"

Sakura's eyes darkened upon hearing her daughter's question, her grip tightening around the leek stalk she'd been cutting until it exploded in her hands. "Uncle Sai said that did he? Don't worry about what he says, he's an idiot."

Later that evening, she heard her mom on the phone with Ino. "Control the mouth of your husband before I shut it for good!" Apparently her question had struck a nerve. _These adults were definitely hiding something. _Confused, she decided to try asking her Papa instead. _Maybe he'd be easier. _

"Papa," she started when they were training the next morning, "did you always love Mama?"

She watched her father pause, then answer very matter of factly, "Love is something that can only develop over time."

"That's not really an answer…" she pouted. "You and Mama are so cryptic about your relationship. If I didn't know better, I'd say you were hiding something! Are you guys even married? I haven't seen any wedding photos in the house! The Nanadaime has them all over his!"

Sasuke looked disapprovingly at his daughter's finger, which had been raised in an accusatory fashion. He was confused. His daughter had always been curious about their relationship but she'd never pushed this hard before. _What was going on?_

"Did you and mom have me out of wedlock? Is that why you had to get married?" He raised an eyebrow. "Something really embarrassing like that must have happened for your files to be blocked from being seen!"

He almost laughed then at the incredulity of her words and Sarada seethed at him. "You'd think your love was classified, I can't find anything out!"

"What more do you need to know than that we care for you and each other?"

"It's just," she toed the ground, suddenly shy, "everyone else knows about their parents' love story. Himawari has mentioned at least 50 times the Nanadaime's proposal, and Inojin and Shikadai talk about their parents at home all the time...all your friends know what happened because they were there...I feel like I'm left out…What's so bad about your story that you and Mama won't tell me? I promise I won't laugh!"

Sasuke grimaced. Laugh? More like she'd cry. "We can talk more when you're older. Some things require age to understand."

Sarada groaned. "What's there to understand? It's just love!" Her parents were hopeless. Nevertheless, she relented, seeing the talk with her father was doing nothing more than make her even more frustrated. Little did she know she would find out soon enough.

It was that evening that she finally learnt the truth. Sakura had ordered her to bed and was in the kitchen, tidying up while Sasuke sat on a chair and watched. Although they were speaking quietly so as not to wake her, she still managed to catch what they were saying.

"Has Sarada been acting weird lately to you?" She heard her Papa ask.

"Weird?" Her mom looked up in thought. "Well, the other day she did ask me about how we fell in love…"

"Aa. She asked me this as well, if I'd always loved you."

Sakura blushed, then her expression darkened. "It's all that idiot Sai's fault. Apparently she overheard him say that you and I tried to kill each other before. She asked me about it."

"And what did you tell her?" Sasuke frowned. Although he knew his daughter loved him, their relationship was still developing and he knew that her finding out about his past might jeopardize any chance they had at bonding.

"I told her that he's an idiot and not to mind him. What was I supposed to tell her, the truth? That you and I tried to kill each other when we were teenagers? That you were once an international criminal who tried to end the world and almost killed me not once but thrice, but now everything's a-ok? How could a child process that? Some things are better left unknown."

Unbeknownst to them, their daughter had heard everything, Sharingan flickering as she tried to keep her emotions in check. _Kill each other? International criminal? Who were these people she called her parents? _She paused behind the doorway, debating whether to make her presence known or not. Her hands curled into fists. She had to be strong. She would get the truth no matter what.

"You're both liars!" she stepped into the living room.

They turned towards her, surprised. "Sarada…"

"Save it Mama," she glared at them. "I asked you a direct question and you lied to me! You said Uncle Sai was just being stupid, but I knew you were hiding something!"

Sakura looked at their daughter with concern. She could see the Sharingan flickering, a clear indication of her emotional instability. "Sarada...please calm down…"

"No! Is this why you never tell me anything about you and Papa? Because it's not a love story, it's a horror story?! Are you guys even really in love or are you just pretending?!"

It was at times like these they regretted the life they lived. Due to Sasuke's constant and long term missions, and despite their love and Sakura's care, their daughter had developed insecurities about their family that most children wouldn't even have thought of. She had been prone to outbursts every once in a while, but they hadn't expected one now, because they had been spending more time together as a family. They had foolishly thought that they could erase the past just by making the future better. It would clearly take more time. And fewer stupid friends with big mouths. Seeing her like this pained them both and they exchanged a brief, desperate glance, unsure of how to calm her down.

"Of course we love each other," Sakura reassured, making a mental note to slam Sai into the ground next time she saw him. "What's in the past is in the past. Everyone does things they're not proud of when they're young. Ours were just...on a larger scale."

"Tell me everything. I want to know. I'm your child and should be the closest to you, but I feel the furthest away! Everyone knows more about you than I do!" Sarada was in tears by this point, her nails digging into her fists at her side.

Sasuke watched Sakura, also now in tears, plead with their daughter to calm down and reassure her that they love both her and each other, but it clearly wasn't working. As he had said, she was curious about everything, a trait she shared with himself. He closed his eyes, his face set hard, trying to think of what he could do to alleviate the situation he knew he had helped create with his prolonged absence and ongoing secrecy. She wasn't letting up, her emotions only becoming more intense, and he worried that if she kept it up much longer she'd make herself sick from the prolonged Sharingan activation. He sighed, resigning himself to what he knew he had to do. Even if it made her hate him...he would tell her the truth.

"Alright, that's enough." They both turned to look at him, teary eyed and surprised. "If you want to know the truth, I will tell you. But it's not a nice story so think about if you really want to hear it." The sternness in her father's voice almost makes Sarada think twice.

She gulps, before hiccuping a, "T-tell me everything."

So he does. He tells her about how he set down a dark path of revenge against those who killed his family, although he leaves out the part about who this person was. He tells her about how cold he used to be, how he left her Mama unconscious on a bench at age 13, nearly killed her three times in their mid teens, and abandoned her again shortly after.

Sarada listens enraptured by every detail. Just as she started to wonder if her parents are insane for being together after all this, Sakura chimes in. "It's not all bad," she laughs nervously. She takes over and tells Sarada about her father's periodic return. About their first date that had lasted all of 2 minutes before the rest of Team 7 decided to crash it. About how he hadn't bothered to get an apartment because he was never around and he'd had to crash at her place when he was in town. About the letters they exchanged when he was out of town that brought them closer together even in his absence. About all the interesting and wonderful things they'd seen on their travels together a year later, and the souvenir they'd unexpectedly brought home with them at the end of their trip: her.

"Your story should be a movie!" she declares at the end. "All those other stories I've heard now seem boring! But...Mama, it's clear that you always loved Papa and maybe were even too good to him at times. Papa, you seemed like a real jerk! How could you keep breaking Mama's heart like that?"

"Aa. It was a different time."

"So I heard how Mama kept falling for you...How did you fall in love with Mama?"

"She wore me down over time," Sasuke smirked, seeing Sarada and his wife's unimpressed stares. At least they weren't crying anymore...

_Looks like Papa won't be winning Husband of the Year anytime soon..._

His face then turned serious. "Sarada, if this story teaches you anything, it's that you should cherish the people who love you. Even if you can't always see each other, those bonds are always there. Just trust us."

Sarada wiped the remaining tears from her eyes and nodded. "I understand Papa. Thank you for trusting me with your story."

Always full of affection and reveling in their family moment, Sakura gripped the two of them and brought them in close together in an embrace. "Oh I love you two so much!" she cooed, grip loosening only slightly when she saw them wince at her bone crushing grip.

As Sakura turned to the kitchen to make them all some tea before settling in for the night, Sarada approached her father at the table.

"I'm glad you and Mama are married now. I know what's in the past is in the past, but if you hurt Mama again, I swear I won't forgive you!"

"Ah," he agreed, nodding, eyes fixated on Sakura. "I won't forgive myself either."


End file.
